In this series Professor Moriarty takes on a new and somewhat less sinister role -- he's still a master mind and a criminal, but not the primary villain. In this story a wide array of characters find themselves together on a ship with a great deal of gold being shipped from India to England.

I found this to be a very enjoyable new take on the ultimate evil doer. ( )

Michael Kurland has written a series of Sherlockiana from the point of view of "The Napoleon of Crime" Professor Moriarty. In these books Sherlock Holmes and his friends accuse Moriarty of every crime perpetrated in England. Moriarty admits that he is a criminal, but that he uses his ill-gotten-gains to fund his scientific research. In this story Moriarty and his friend Colonel Moran are on a steamship traveling from Calcutta to London. On board is a large amount of gold and a variety of stereotypical Victorian characters; the old fashioned British military officer, the plucky young woman and her dashing love interest, the gang of thugs led by an inscrutable Chinaman and the bungling Scotland Yard detectives. A very enjoyable read. ( )